La Vita E Bella
by chelseali
Summary: A Beautiful Life JUMPER MOVIE FANFIC She had forgotten everything until the letter arrived, now she is remembering it all, every moment she spent with him, and she is learning to let go... Jumper isn't in the movie section so i put it in here
1. What to do with all these memories

**The point of this story: Well, basically Griffin had to of had something good in his life just once right? Well, I've decided to give him that. So this basically what this story is… I hope you like it,**

**Authors not: Hi, this is my first fanfic, so if you could all be nice I would be grateful. Would much appreciate reviews but don't fell you have to. Basically, enjoy. J**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Griffin or any of the other Jumper related characters. If I am using a character from Jumper I will specify their name in this. I do on the other hand own Poppy and any other non-Jumper related character.**

Chapter One, what to do with all these memories…

She couldn't move her eyes from the white rectangular letter lying on the table. She knew immediately who it was from. The messy scrawled handwriting had given it away immediately. She took a deep breath reaching out a shaking hand. Her fingers stopped instantly only millimetres away. No. She wouldn't read it… she _couldn't _read it. No matter how hard she tried her fingers refused to pick it up. Her brain was screaming at her to burn it. "QUICKLY! Get a match and burn it, now before its too late." But she couldn't do that either. She couldn't bring herself to touch it, not even to throw it away. How was it, even after all this time, he still had an unbreakable hold over her? She wondered how long she had been sitting here. She knew it had been a while, her body was proof of that. It ached from being tense for so long. She took slow deep breathes, trying to relax her muscles. It didn't work, every time she thought she had relaxed her eyes caught a glimpse of that stark white and her body automatically tensed again. It had been tense since she had walked through the front door to find it on the table with a note from her roommate telling her it had arrived that morning. Her mind had spun with questions all clouding over one another. How had he found her? Where was he? Was he okay? What did he want? Why get in touch now, after so long? The questions confused her even more then the letter. She knew the answer probably lay inside but with them meant giving in to him. Giving in to his wishes and reading the letter. She didn't care if it was stubborn. She didn't want to do anything more for him, not now, not ever.

She stood up suddenly moving quickly from the room. She slammed the door behind her, leaving the letter untouched on the table. She made her way quickly up the stairs in the darkness not bothering to switch on a light. She wanted the darkness. It kept the accusing looks of her mirrored self away. "Why wouldn't you open it?" She would ask herself. "What if he needs help?" It took all her will power to keep herself from running back down the stairs to open the letter. She walked along the corridor into her room, closing the door behind her, she tried to block out the rest of the house. She got changed quickly into a pair of shorts and a tee shirt and climbed into bed, all the while leaving the lights off. She stared out of her window, not even bothering to get up and close the drapes. She left them alone, instead, staring at the stars. Each one reminded her of him. She knew she'd never block him out, but it didn't stop her trying. She breathed in and out slowly, waiting for sleep to wash over her. It didn't. Instead her mind began to remember, memories she'd thought had been long forgotten. She was wrong. They weren't forgotten, just laid aside. And as she sat and watched the stars shine, the memories moved around her, enveloping her in what once had been her reason for living. Her love, her sadness, her open mind, her understanding, her life… her _Griffin_.

_Poppy Chang span around on the spot trying to keep her eyes on one unmoving object. It was hard to do that. Everything was spinning with her after all. Her head began to ache and she tried to slow herself down but that just made it worse. She stopped suddenly then wished she hadn't as her suddenly unsteady legs gave way and she fell painfully to the floor. Ouch, was all she could think. That and, when is the world going to stop spinning? Wow, this had been a bad idea. She obviously hadn't thought it through, but then again, when did she _ever_ think things through? Poppy laid back in the daisy dotted grass and stared up at the bight blue sky. Fluffy white clouds where scattered across it beautifully. Poppy studied them all, trying to determine what shape or character they made. She did this until she thought her mind had stood spinning. She stood up quickly. Too quickly, her mind began to spin again. She clutched at her skull willing the spinning to stop. She tried to focus on the distance. What she saw made her head spin even more. Out of no where, a dirty-blonde haired young man appeared. She gasped loudly and his head turned slowly to look at her. Neither of them moved for what seemed like eternity. Their eyes meeting and holding the connection, even with the distance between them. His eyes where so blue, so bold. Those blue eyes revealed so much, so much she knew she shouldn't have seen, she wasn't even sure she had wanted to see it. She just had and she couldn't take it back. She saw the loss, the pain, the hatred, the anger and the longing. And in her heart she understood it all, every emotion. Because she too felt them all. If she'd known her own pale green eyes had revealed the same thing, she would have looked away immediately instead of holding his gaze. She looked away, unable to take anymore and when she looked back, he was gone. She hadn't understood it then, understood what she'd seen, or what she'd felt. But she would soon. So she would understand it all. But most of all, she would understand him._

_Poppy made her way along the streets of the small town, looking at all the dainty houses. They were all beautiful, and homely, yet oh-so fake. The people that lived in them lived lies. She was sure there was a single person in this place that was living a lie or hurting those around them. If she hadn't known any better she would have thought they were all performing their hateful tasks purposefully. Each setting out to hurt those they were supposed to feel closest to, those they where supposed to love and care about. But no-one was that cruel, where they? She had been a naïve little eighteen year old. But it was okay, she would learn. Everyone did, eventually. She walked briskly past them all, no longer wanting to look at the blatant fake-ness. She made her way into the surprisingly large town centre, filled with shops. There many different types, ranging from restaurants, to clothing outlets, to shoe stores, convenience marquees, and so on and so forth. Poppy made her way towards a ruby red Chinese restaurant, considered to be the best one in town. Poppy smiled sadly as she stood outside, looking up at the brightly lit lanterns inside, giving off a warm and homely glow, as it glistened off the ruby red paint and furniture. The homely glow, too was fake, the homely-ness of the restaurant had left years ago for its workers and owners. It had left along with her parents. When they had died, its gently atmosphere had died with it. Poppy pushed open the door and stepped gingerly inside._

"_Oh hello darling," her grandfather smiled sadly at her from the counter._

_She smiled back, her expression most probably resembling his, as she slid into onto a chair at the nearest table. It always amazed Poppy how oriental her grandparents where. They where the very essence of Chinese, where the only resemblance in Poppy was the eyes._

"_You take after your mother," her Gama had told her affectionately._

_She had loved Audrey, Poppy's mother. She may not have been Chinese but she was still and affectionate and loving woman, and in Gama's mind that had made up for her beloved son marrying this beautiful woman._

"_So, my little war-flower, how was your day?" The old man came around the counter to sit besides her._

"_It was fine, Puppy, just fine," Poppy replied as enthusiastically as possible._

"_Hmm, I see," he nodded, moving so she could leave. "Will you be sneaking out again tonight?"_

_Poppy looked at him suddenly, confusion evident of her face. How had he known?_

"_I am your Grand-Puppy, I know everything little war-flower," he smiled kindly. "Besides, your Gama worries so."_

"_Okay, yes, I'll probably be going out." Poppy sighed making her way to the back of the restaurant._

"_If you do, could you flick the kitchen light three times, just to let me know? And then do then same when you return?" He asked._

"_Of course, Puppy, of course," Poppy smiled to herself as she made her way up the stairs to her room._

_Poppy flicked the kitchen light three times before closing the door behind as she made her way out into the darkness. She could almost feel her Puppy smile. She made her way out of the garden and along the path, leading to the long road, leading to the daisy hills, which the playground beneath. The moon and stars gave her guiding light. She moved briskly up the hill, not stopping till she reached the top. She looked out at the small town beneath her, loving the lights in the darkness. The town was connected to a road that a three hour walk down would take you to a large city. Poppy had been once and loved it. She intended to move there soon. The only thing that kept her from leaving was the moonlight and the stars. Her family she had already lost. What was left of it would leave eventually soon as well. Everyone would leave, she had learnt this the hard way. She lay down on the grass looking up at the sky. She had been laying there for an hour when she felt a presence behind her. She sat up quickly, turning her head and upper torso to look. She gasped quietly. It was him. She felt an excited feeling rise up inside her and wondered suddenly where it had come from. She tired to stop her lips from moving into a smile, but she couldn't stop it. They where in control and the sight of him moved them automatically._

_He smiled back, a sad smile, but a smile none the less._

"_Can I join you?" He asked in a slight Northern accent. It had a speck of American laced in, which she loved. It was completely his own._

_She didn't trust herself to speak yet so she nodded instead. He moved forward and sat down besides her, his body only inches from her own._

"_It's beautiful, isn't it?" He spoke softly looking out to the distance._

_She nodded again, still not speaking._

"_Don't you talk?" He laughed casually. It was a nice sound. Poppy liked it._

_She snapped her head suddenly. What was wrong with her? She'd only just met him and already she was developing a stupid childish crush. She pushed it viciously away and surprisingly it worked. When she looked back at him, he was just a young man, someone who had sat down besides her to watch the night sky. She smiled softly. Yes, she felt she knew him, but in all honesty, she didn't. So she would stop being childish and she would treat him like she treated everyone else. With kindness, until they proved not to deserve it._

_She turned back to the night sky, taking it all in._

"_Yes, I talk," she spoke quietly, her voice barely being carried to his ears._

"_Oh, that's good," he turned his head to look at her. "I was worried for a second that all we'd do was sit in silence. Now sometimes that's good, but I think in this case, I'd like to talk. What d'you think?"_

"_Yes, I'd like to talk," she nodded, also turning her head to look at him. "Let's talk."_

"_Definitely," he reached out his hand to hers and she reached out taking it in her own, as they shook hands her eyes stayed with his, unmoving, just staring, it was all they needed at that moment. _

_Until he broke the spell with an even bigger one, a spell that would stay with her till the day she died. "My name is Griffin…"_

**Authors End note: So, what do you think? A bit cheesey? I like cheese but is it too chessey? it's a bit of an abrupt end to the chapter as well, but I kinda like it like that…. Anyone disagree? Please let me know.**


	2. Does the sun shine up at you

**Authors Note: We're basically still in Poppy's memory. When we go back to present day Poppy I'll let you know. J**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Griffin or any other Jumper related characters that pop up along the way, I do on the other hand own Poppy and every un-Jumper related character, that also pops up along the way.**

Chapter two, does the sun shine up at you, when you are looking down?

_Poppy closed the backdoor behind her as quietly as possible. She _

_couldn't wipe the smile off her face. It was too infectious. She flicked the lights three times as instructed then made her way towards the stairs. She felt her way up the banister in the dark, not wanting to wake her grandparents by switching on the light. When she was safely up the stairs and out of their downstairs bedroom sightline, she moved to switch on a table lamp then stopped suddenly. She looked around her in the darkness. She could feel someone watching her. Couldn't she? She scanned the long corridor trying to see down into the dark. She couldn't see anything. If anyone was there they'd easily be able to blend into the shadows. Poppy shook her head, a feeling of discomfort spreading over her body. She switched on the light quickly. Empty, the corridor was completely empty of any other human being. Poppy was the only one standing there. She laughed uneasily. She must have been imagining things, right? She opened her door quickly and slipped inside, firmly shutting it behind her. She moved towards her bed, thoughts of him enveloping her brain. The second he invading her thoughts the smile appeared, she couldn't stop it, and it was surely beginning to bug her. Griffin. He'd said his name was Griffin._

_Poppy lay flat on her back staring up at the night sky. He was right, it was beautiful. She'd liked the way he'd talked. He was honest, unlike most of the people that lived in the stupid town. He'd told her so little about him yet asked so much about her. She hadn't told him much, but she had made sure not to lie. She'd told him she lived with her grandparents. She hadn't told him why, and he hadn't ask. It was odd, almost as though he knew what the questions he could ask, and the ones that he couldn't stayed inside his mind. She could tell he was thinking them though, his eyes said it all. He didn't bother trying to hide it either. She turned over on her side, slipping under the covers, she began to think of his appearance. He had worn all black, black jeans, a black leather jacket, black tee shirt and black trainers. It had suited him though, giving him some sort of rebel appearance. His hair was a dirty blonde, and wasn't really short yet wasn't long either, it was kinda messy, but it had suited him. He was a slim build, yet was still visibly strong. And when she'd told him she had to go, he'd stood up to help her and she found herself surprised at his height. He was short, or tall, standing at what she guessed to be about 5'7 or 8''. _

_She shook her head violently, banishing anymore invading thoughts of him. She closed her eyes and waited for the sleep to wash over. It was as she was falling into a deep slumber she realised she'd forgotten to change._

_Poppy awoke in the same clothes she'd worn the day before and cursed herself for forgetting to take them off and even more for being too lazy to then get out of bed and change. She pulled them off quickly making sure she showered before getting dressed. Before picking her clothes she checked the weather out of her bedroom window. The sun was shining brightly and she took this as a sign to choose something summer-y. She choose a yellow mini-sun dress with ditsy print flowers on, with a pair of black skinny jeans. She slipped her feet into a pair of black satin open toed flats. She checked her reflection in her floor length mirror. She couldn't help but smile. She looked good. She was a size six with slight curves, another Asian heritage, the fortune of being skinny. And if you were lucky you still got to look feminine due to the added bonus of a slight cleavage and existent hips._

_Poppy left her reflection and made her way out of her room, she bounded merrily down the stairs whistling to herself. She bumped into her Gama as she moved into the kitchen._

"_Well hello there little one," Her Gama beamed at her. "You're very cheerful this morning, eh?"_

"_No more cheerful then usual," Poppy shrugged, pushing her fringe from her eyes._

"_Ah, I see," Gama nodded slowly as if she understood._

"_You see what?" Poppy questioned._

"_I see what I see little one," Gama winked secretively._

_Poppy hated it when she did that, treated everything like a major secret, when it was more often then not the most obvious thing. But then that was the most annoying thing about it. The fact that it was so obvious, yet Poppy still hadn't been able to figure it out. Poppy moved past her quickly into the kitchen settling down in her seat she helped herself to some cereal and milk. Gama entered after her, smiling happily to herself. Poppy rolled her eyes as she swallowed a mouthful of food. She found herself looking out of the window, ignoring the constant chatter between her grandparents. Poppy wasn't really sure what she had originally been thinking of but soon enough her mind went straight back to him. Griffin._

"_What has made you so happy?" Puppy called out to her, cutting into her thoughts._

"_Huh? What? Nothing," Poppy shook her head, getting up from the table she placed her empty bowl in the sink._

"_Hmm, I see," he smiled, his brown eyes twinkling._

"_Oh, so you see as well?" Poppy turned to them, leaning against the counter top, she folded her arms across her chest._

"_Oh course, I see everything," he laughed._

"_Do you really?" Poppy rose an eyebrow._

"_Well, obviously not _everything _little war-flower," Puppy shrugged, looking a lot like Poppy had earlier._

_Poppy sighed as she made her way to the door. She turned to look at them quickly, taking in their constant happiness. She couldn't happen but question whether, it to, like this town, were completely fake. Were they really happy? Or was it a pretence for her? Pretend to be strong so that she too felt 'secure' in her life and not wobbling dangerously over an edge, so that any sudden movement would send her toppling into darkness. If that were the truth of it, they had failed. But she would never tell them that._

"_I'm going out, I said I'm meet Janey today," Poppy informed them._

"_Okay then," Her Puppy nodded, "do you have enough money?"_

"_Yep," Poppy nodded. _

"_Okay, then have fun war-flower," Puppy waved as she left._

_She closed the front door behind as she stepped out into the sunshine. Poppy took in her surroundings. As much as she loved to pretend different, the town was beautiful, almost like a fairy book. So many beautiful places to go and explore. But then there were also the factors for adults too. It really did offer a lot. If you liked feeling like you where locked into a cage with the bubbliest, fakest, human being whose smile seemed to be cracking by the second, leaving you wondering when they where going to finally explode and get all the hatred out in the open. Poppy made her way quickly to the town centre, wanting to get the day other and done with._

_Poppy caught a glimpse of herself in a shop window. Her long dark auburn hair was shining brightly in the sun. And she liked that her skin didn't look too pale, or too tanned. She could definitely say she liked her appearance today. She made her way into the park where she knew Janey would be waiting._

_Poppy noticed Janey sitting on a bench surrounding a tree, Janey's favourite spot. Poppy made her way over, sitting down beside her 'best'-friend._

"_Hello there," Janey smiled. "Got a new pair of shoes, and I think its safe to say I'm in love with them."_

"_You're in love with every pair of shoes you own." Poppy frowned._

"_So?" Janey laughed, a loud shrill fake laugh. "What's your point/?"_

"_I guess nothing," Poppy sighed, looking down the street._

_She saw him at first out of the corner of her eye then he moved directly into her line of vision. _Griffin.

"_Who?" Janey looked up._

_Poppy hadn't realised she'd said his name out loud, and she wished she hadn't as Janey was now looking for the culprit._

"_I don't know anyone called Griffin," she frowned. "Is he ne- oh hello."_

_Bingo. She'd seen him._

"_What have we here then? Griffin?" Janey stood up slowly, then ignore Poppy's protests began to make her way towards him, giving Poppy no choice but to move quickly after her._

_Griffin was leaning against a tree trunk reading a faded leather book, when a shadow fell across his light. He looked up to find himself looking into a pair of large chocolate brown eyes._

"_Hi," The girl smiled seductively at him._

_He rose an eyebrow, already knowing what was on _her_ mind._

"_Hi yourself," he smiled back, though his smile was a whole lot more casual. That was until he noticed who stepped up beside the girl and his smile grew considerably. Something Janey noticed with annoyance. "Poppy."_

"_Hi Griffin," Poppy smiled back. "How're yo-"_

"_I'm Janey," Janey cut in quickly._

"_Well, I'm Griffin," he nodded, shaking her hand. "And to answer Poppy's interrupted question. I'm fine today thank you. What about yourself?"_

"_Hmm, I think I'll be alright," Poppy smiled._

"_Well, that's good isn't it?" He was looking and talking to her, and both the girls knew it._

_This didn't mean Janey was going to give up. She never did._

"_So, Griffin, where are you from?" Janey asked,_

"_Not here," Griffin answered simply, only looking at her for a few seconds before his gaze went back to Poppy._

"_Well that's a given," Janey laughed, another fake laugh._

"_Yes it is," Griffin finally turned to look at her, knowing full well this was what she wanted._

"_You know, the people here don't really like the city types," Janey smirked taking a step closer._

"_Good thing I'm not a city type then isn't it?" Griffin leaned in towards her._

_Was he flirting? Poppy was sure, but she had a horrible feeling the answer was yes. She looked away from them both, watching the children in the play area. She decided to keep her attention on that instead of their flirting. She didn't know why but she was crushed. What she didn't know was that it was visible on her turned face, and Griffin noticed._

"_So Griffin, what are you doing tonight?" Janey asked as casually as she could master at that present moment._

"_Why do you want to know?" He asked, his gliding towards the side of Poppy's face, then back to Janey in disappointment. She still wasn't looking. Luckily for him, he was better at hiding his emotions then Poppy, as Janey didn't notice a thing, and stuff like this was her M.O._

"_Because, there's going to be a party, and I think you should come," Janey moved even closer, this Poppy noticed. Yes, she was listening. Just coz she wasn't showing it, didn't mean she wasn't._

_Griffin noticed her jaw clench, giving him an opportunity which he took._

"_It depends," He sighed, as if he were truly thinking about it._

"_On what?" Janey smirk, thinking she had won._

"_Whether or not Poppy is going to be there," Griffin too was smirking, but his was caused by the look of surprise of Janey's face. The smirk was well and truly gone. It grew when he saw Poppy's head snap back around to look at him. Her pale green eyes showing as much surprise as Janey's._

_Janey recovered quicker._

"_Well, I don't know if little miss is going, but I am, so if she doesn't I'll be there to keep you… company." Janey's voice had a spark of seduction in it._

_Griffin couldn't help but smile. She had definitely had practice. He laughed to himself before looking back at Poppy._

"_Well? Are you going to be there?" He asked._

"_Umm…" She didn't know what to say. Yes? No? Maybe? Probably not? She never went to these stupid things. She'd only ever been to about five, which was minuet when you compared it with the record of the others teenagers around here. But for Griffin… "Maybe."_

"_Well, I'm not going unless you are," he answered simply. "After all, I don't know anyone else."_

"_Like that would usually stop you." Janey rose an eyebrow._

_Griffin decided to ignore her. "Poppy? Come on, don't ruin my evening."_

"_Okay, I'll go," she nodded._

"_Good." He nodded. "Then I'll be there."_

"_GREAT!" Janey shrieked happily._

_Anyone listening would have thought she was the girl called Poppy. Whereas the real Poppy simply nodded._

"_Well," Janey breathed happily. "We'll meet you outside the park gates at nine 'o' clock, okay?"_

"_I'll be there," Griffin nodded._

"_Good, now we're gonna go shopping." Janey began to pull Poppy away._

_She just managed a "goodbye Griffin." As they walked away, Poppy found herself looking back, and as she had expected, just like the night before. He was gone._


	3. It isn't so wrong to have such fun

-1**Authors Note: When I first started writing this, I hadn't actually seen Jumper so I was basically winging it off the trailers and such. I saw it yesterday and will say, if you haven't seen it, go see it, its good. Griffin is hilarious.**

**And we're still in Poppy's memory.**

**Disclaimer: You already know the drill… I don't own Griffin or any other Jumper related character, I'll let you know if one pops up. But I do own Poppy and any other un-Jumper related character. See… same old thing.**

Chapter Three, It isn't so wrong to have such fun

_Poppy began flinging her clothes aimlessly from her wardrobe across her bedroom floor. She had no idea what to wear and there was no way she was going to ask Janey for help, she'd just make Poppy look stupid in an attempt to get Griffin's attention. No. That wasn't true, was it? Oh who was she kidding, of course it was true. There was no way Janey would help, with the _actual_ intention of helping. Poppy sat down on the floor in a heap of clothes. She had given up. There was no way on this Earth she'd actually find something that fit in with what everyone else would be wearing. She stood up grumpily, stamping her way from her room. She stopped at the top of the stairs and stared down into the darkness. There it was again, the eerie feeling of being watched, she turned quickly to switch on the light. When she turned back, once again, there was nothing there, and the feeling was gone. She frowned slightly as she made her way down. She took her time, looking at every inch of the corridor below before she took a single step out into the open. Satisfied it was empty she walked into the restaurant to help her Puppy behind the counter._

"_Aren't you supposed to be getting ready?" He frowned._

"_What's the point? I'm not going to fit in anyway," Poppy sighed taking down a take-away customers order and passing it through a hatch into the kitchen._

"_Hmm.." Puppy frowned. "What do you mean, 'fit in'?"_

"_You know, look like them," Poppy explained, raising an eyebrow at him._

"_But you've never looked like any of them," his frown didn't lift. "So why to start now?"_

_Poppy looked at him for a few moments._

"_What do _you_ mean?" She asked slowly._

"_You have stood out your whole life, little war-flower," he smiled. "Maybe sometimes for reasons beyond your control, and for others, you have chosen to look different. Why now do you suddenly want to try to fit in, when you naturally stand out? You are beautiful because of it."_

_Poppy felt a slow smile spread across her lips. She squealed happily, throwing her arms around him before turning on her heels and running happily back to her room._

"_Something I said?" Puppy laughed, handing yet another customer their order._

_Poppy stood looking at her full length reflection, taking in the effect of the outfit. She had decided on a mid-thigh length black dress. It had a V cut breast with thick straps. Below the breast, was crème lacing and just above the hem a thick tapestry line of rich reds and oranges. It was a bit hippy but looked great. Around her neck hung a long silver chain necklace with varied charms hanging from it. On her feet she wore a pair of ruby red peep-toed high heels. She smiled as she looked at her self. She decided to leave her hair down and use minimal make-up. She looked good, great even._

_Poppy left her room, grabbing her miniature black quilt bag. She bounced happily down the stairs and out to the restaurant._

"_What do you think?" she asked happily._

"_Unique," Puppy smiled kissing her on the forehead. "Now go have fun. And remember flick the lig-"_

"_Three times on my return, I know," she walked swiftly though the restaurant out onto the street._

_She had arranged to meet Janey at the park entrance, as Janey had claimed this would be simply 'easier'. Poppy had been suspicious but had got on with it, not wanting to cause a pointless fuss. She walked along staring at the night sky. She didn't really get why, but ever time she looked at it, she thought of Griffin. As she neared the park she looked up to find the entrance empty, she checked the pocket watch charm hanging from her necklace. She was on time. When she looked up Griffin was leaning against the outside wall. She frowned as she neared, knowing the only possible way he'd got of got there was by walking past her._

_Or he could have been in the park silly, a voice in her head butted in, stop being so suspicious._

_Poppy nodded in agreement and smiled as she stopped in front of him._

"_You look great," he informed her._

"_You look the same," she smiled._

"_Black's my m.o.," he laughed. "So, where's the 'best friend'?"_

_Poppy shrugged as she looked around for Janey. She was normally late, but Poppy had thought that she'd get here on time, due to the new arrival._

"_We could just ditch her, you know," Griffin interrupted her thoughts._

"_Now that wouldn't be very nice would it?" Poppy smiled._

"_No," he shook his head seriously. "But its still a possibility."_

"_No, it isn't." She shook her head at him._

"_Fine, I guess we can keep it as plan B," he sighed._

"_Then what's plan A?" Poppy asked._

"_We hope she doesn't show." Griffin's face was a picture of seriousness which Poppy couldn't read._

_Was he being serious? Something told her he was. But she _still_ wasn't sure._

"_Hey beautifuls!"_

_They turned to see Janey approaching them, looking more whore then a street hooker. _

"_Too late," Griffin sighed looking away._

_Poppy's eyebrows reached her hairline as she took in the fishnets and the shortest pvc skirt she'd ever seen, she had suspicions it was really a belt. She wore what half the perverted men in town called 'come-fuck-me' boots and the lowest lacy top available to the human race. All black. Can you say copy cat?_

"_So? How do I look." Janey smirked at their faces._

"_You look… interesting," Griffin stared, a bemused look spreading across his face._

"_You look like a whore," Poppy's response was blunt and more factual then Griffin's._

"_Yeah there's that as well," Griffin nodded._

"_Ooooh, touchy," Janey laughed at Poppy, waving her arms in the air. "Aww, are you going for the free-spirited hippy look?"_

"_No," Poppy replied curtly._

"_Can you not wave your arms in the air?" Griffin asked. "Men in cars are gonna start asking for a price list."_

_Both Janey and Poppy stared at this. Then their expressions took opposite paths. Poppy began to laugh and Janey's face twisted in anger._

"_Whatever," she seethed folding her arms across her over exposed chest._

_Poppy waited for Griffin to begin apologising and sucking up to Janey for forgiveness… but he didn't. And if Janey was waiting for it she'd be waiting a long time. Instead he merely stood up straight and began walking away from the two girls along the road._

"_Are we going to this party or not?" He called back._

_Janey suddenly sprang into action cheering herself up she skipped after him, linking her arm through his._

"_Of course we are, and its gonna be great." She grinned up at him like an idiot._

_Poppy rolled her eyes as she walked after them._

_Poppy couldn't hear a thing the music was pumping so violently from the speakers positioned in all areas of the over crowded rooms. She tired to ignore all the leering faces, as she wandered around the house looking for Janey. Or even Griffin for that matter._

_She hardly recognised any of the faces, and the ones she did she knew she'd never spoken to. She felt awkwardly out of place, definitely not in the good way her Puppy had convinced her she was. She bit her lip in worry as she continued to walk around, _still_ not finding her companions. She couldn't honestly say if she was more upset by the fact she'd been left alone or the thought of Janey and Griffin ditching her to be with each other. She mentally kicked herself for caring so much. She looked around hopelessly then on not seeing either of them she decided to give up._

_She threw herself down into an empty armchair, folding her arms over her chest she watched the other party goers enjoy themselves._

"_Hey, Poppy, right?"_

_She looked to her right to find Max Reeley smiling down at her. She couldn't help but stare. How did _he_ know _her_ name? He simply smiled at her shocked expression._

"_Don't look so surprised," he sat down on the arm of the chair, leaning in so she could hear him properly. "You're Janey's best friend, aren't you?"_

"_I guess you could say that," she nodded slowly._

"_You don't seem very impressed, what's up?" Max asked._

"_My so called best friend ha ditched me," Poppy sighed._

"_Well her loss is my gain, right?" Max held out his hand for Poppy to take._

"_Err…" She frowned up at him._

"_Dance with me," he motioned to the somewhat crowded dance floor._

"_Hmmm… I dunno," she looked around her in hesitation._

"_Come on," he pulled her up and led her to the floor, where he swiftly put his arms around her waist and began moving her body to the music._

_To say the least Poppy was confused. Where had this come from? He'd never once paid attention to her before, why start now? And why start when she didn't want it? She'd much rather know what Griffin was doing. She didn't know how long she'd been dancing with him but she'd been spun around several times in the process and was starting to feel dizzy. When he spun her around for the umpteenth time she caught sight of Griffin out of the corner of her eye. Janey was clinging onto his arm desperately trying to get his attention. Unfortunately for her, his attention was securely on Poppy and Max. Poppy had never seen anyone look so un-amused. She swallowed uncomfortably, all to aware of his burning stares. She stepped away from Max suddenly._

"_I've just seen my friend," she smiled. "Looks like you don't have to put with me anymore."_

"_I wasn't 'putting up with you', as you put it," he laughed. "I was enjoying myself. And besides, she's got her bloke with her."_

"_It's not _her_ bloke," Poppy blurted out hastily, too hastily._

_Max rose an eyebrow at her, lowering it slowly._

"_Oh I see," he shook his head in amusement. "You like him."_

_She didn't get why he was smiling but she rolled with it._

"_Well, then you'll be glad to know he's been watching us for the last ten minutes. With possibly the most venomous look on his face I've ever seen," Max smiled. "Go talk to him. Make it clear to Janey he isn't hers."_

_Max stood waiting for her to make her move._

"_Well, what are you waiting for?" He asked._

"_Why are you just standing there?" She retorted._

"_So he doesn't think I ditched you," Max laughed again. "Let him know you're talking to him because you want to, not coz I've left you. So go."_

_Poppy smiled gratefully, then turned quickly away making her way over to Griffin and a still desperate Janey._

"_But Griffiiiiin," she whined. "I wanna dance."_

"_So go dance," he sighed in annoyance. "And stop clinging on to my bloody arm, do I look like a leaning post?"_

_He snatched his arm viciously away, shocking both Janey and Poppy._

" _Hey," Poppy smiled. "Been having fun?"_

"_Whose you friend?" Griffin ignored her question._

"_Oh? Max? He lives near me," Poppy explained._

"_Oh really? Yeah that's interesting," Griffin's voice dripped with sarcasm._

_Poppy could do nothing but stare. What was his problem?_

"_Err… I'm sorry if I had to make do with Max but you two ditched me, remember? Not the other way around." Poppy glared back at him. "It was out of order to go off together and leave me alone."_

"_We didn't 'go off together'," Griffin laughed. "Like I'd got off with her. No, I was busy sorting out my business. She just sloped off god knows and cares where. So technically _she_ ditched you."_

"_Oh whatever," Poppy turned away from both of them and made her way through the mass of people to the door._

_She couldn't be bothered to stand and listen to his crap. Who did he think he was getting pissed at her for dancing with a, well, with someone else? She'd met him what? Twice? This was the third time she'd seen him, well, technically fourth when including the first time she'd ever seen him. And yes, she felt strangely connected with him but so what? It still didn't mean he had any right to get short with her for dancing. She walked up the street angrily venting her anger._

"_I've figured out what you are…"_

_Poppy jumped back as Griffin stepped out from the shadows of a tree._

"_What? How did you get there?" She stared at him, completely confused._

"_Doesn't matter, but like I said, I've figured you out," he smiled walking towards her._

"_Oh yeah? Enlighten me," Poppy sighed, mentally stopping herself from taking a step back. There was no way she was backing down._

"_Nah, I'd rather not," he smiled, directly in front of her face._

_There was a maximum difference of five inches between their heights and she could feel his hot breath on her face. She swallowed pathetically trying to ignore his body warmth._

"_Figures, well guess what, you're not the only one who can figure people out," Poppy tired to sound as confident as possible._

"_Yeah?" He smiled, moving even closer, if it was moderately possible._

"_Uh-huh," she nodded slowly, wanting desperately to stand her ground._

"_Well, do tell Miss Poppy," his smile changed slowly into a smirk as Poppy licked her lips nervously._

"_No, I don't feel like it," she shot back childishly._

"_Oh? Well, that ruins my plans of finding out more about myself, doesn't it?" Griffin's eyes shone brighter then she'd ever seen them._

_He was enjoying this, she could tell. His eyes said it all. He was enjoying watching her squirm. She didn't know if it made his feel powerful but it was a pretty pointless power trip and definitely wasn't proving much._

"_Why so nervous Poppy?" He leaned his face closer, his lips only millimetres from her own. "What possible reason could you have you be nervous?"_

_Poppy's heart gave an uncontrollable flutter as his eyes bore into hers. She cursed inwardly hating the effect he was having on her._

"_Well?" He smiled, moving closer still. "Don't you want to answer?"_

_She felt his lips brush hers ever so slightly as he spoke. She knew what was coming next, and to her own surprise she welcomed it. Any second now…_

"_HEY!"_

_The broke apart and turned to find Janey glaring at them._

"_Well, well, well," her face was an image of displeasure. "Isn't this cute?"_

"_Err… Janey?" Poppy took a step back uncomfortably. "Umm…"_

_She didn't know what to say, or if she even had to say anything. She turned to look at Griffin, whose face mirrored Janey's. He on the other hand was pissed she had interrupted._

"_What do you want?" He asked bluntly._

"_Excuse me?" Janey glared at him._

"_Yes, excuse you, now bye," Griffin waved slightly._

"_Err, no, you don't honestly think I'm going to leave my best friend with a complete stranger, do you?" Janey asked with malice._

"_Ah, but if it was you with me instead of Poppy, it would be okay, right?" Griffin a sceptical eyebrow, causing Janey to blush, something Poppy had never seen before._

"_N-n-n-no, that's not what I meant," Janey stuttered._

"_Yeah sure it isn't," Griffin nodded sarcastically._

_He turned back to Poppy ignoring Janey's existence._

"_I'll see you soon," he whispered, so only she could here. "That of course is if you want to see me, a complete stranger, again…"_

_Poppy knew it wasn't a question. And if it had been she also knew they'd both already know the answer._

_Poppy turned slowly and began walking along the road away from both him and Janey. She heard heels clicking behind her and a hand on her arm, which she knew was Janey's. She stole a quick glance behind her and wasn't surprised to see an empty road laying out far in the distance. She turned her face back in the direction she was walking and smiled. She'd soon learn this to be the way of Griffin._

**Authors end note: Hmm… not really sure if I got into the whole sexual tension thing too soon. Input?**


	4. BASIC PLEA OF HEEEELP

Basic plea from author to readers…

Basic plea from author to readers…

Hey.

Well, basically I'm stuck.

I don't really know where to go with the next chapter.

I thought I had it all planned out.

But that's gone out the window… ¬¬

So if someone could basically message me with a few plans or ideas I would be highly grateful.

Thankyou. Chelsea.


	5. It's gonna be brilliant

Authors Note: I've had some great help on this so would like to give Lovebuggy credit for helping move this story along

**Authors Note: I've had some great help on this so would like to give Lovebuggy credit for helping move this story along. The next few chapters are basically dedicated to you for your great help. ******

**Also, remember, italics – memories, non-italics – present Poppy**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Griffin but if I did…**

Chapter Four, It's gonna be brilliant.

_Poppy woke with a start. She shot up out of her bed immediately, her eyes sweeping her room. What was that noise? She knew she'd heard something. Hadn't she?_

_She was certain it hadn't been a dream, but as she gazed around her empty room she suddenly wasn't so sure. She frowned to herself, slowly lowering herself back onto her pillow. Her eyes refused to close and except sleep. Her body was awake and alert and she knew there was no way on this earth she was getting back to sleep anytime soon. She sighed dramatically and swung her bare feet out of bed. She stood up and stretched, her eyes glancing at her bedside clock. 5.33 In the morning. She sighed loudly, turning to look out of her window. Her eyes travelled to the fields a few yards off and connected with a form standing alone at the top. She couldn't help the smile that creased her face. Griffin._

_She watched for a few moments, her mind wondering what he was doing out and alone at this time in the morning. Her mind wandered to the night before and her smile grew increasingly bigger, if that was possible? Oh what the heck? She smiled. It wouldn't harm anyone…_

_She quickly changed into a pair of jeans and a baggy navy blue hoody. She pulled on her shoes and crept slowly out of her room and down the stairs. What was the harm in going to see him? No one would know and she'd be back in time for breakfast. What was the big deal? It wasn't like she was obsessed or anything. She closed the door lightly behind her as she made her way quickly along the dust path towards the near distant fields. She stop at the bottom of the slope and looked up, feeling more then seeing him look at her. She walked slowly up the path, not wanting to appear too eager. As she slowly reached her destination, she saw him smile softly towards her._

"_What brings you here on this glorious morning?" He asked turning to look out at the distance._

"_I was going to ask you the same thing," she smiled._

"_Ah, but I asked first," he continued looking forward but she felt the smile in his voice._

"_I couldn't sleep," she sighed, standing besides him._

"_How come?"_

"_Oh no Griffin, you have to answer my question now, and then you can ask yours," she teased._

_He laughed softly, the sound carrying in the gently breeze. She felt him hesitate slowly, before answering._

"_I wanted to watch the sunrise," he whispered, almost embarrassed._

"_Oh," she nodded, unable to suppress her smile. "Well, it's safe to say your idea was better then mine."_

"_But yours wasn't an idea," he corrected her._

_She turned her head to him slowly, unsure of what to say. He made it easy,_

"_Would you like to watch the sunrise with me, Miss Poppy?"_

"_Yes," she nodded softly, turning her head to the east._

_They stood in silence as the sun rose, boarding the distance. Poppy gasped in wonder. It was beautiful. She suddenly wondered why she'd never thought of it before. She felt sudden warmth wash over her as she took it all in. It took her a while to realise the warmth was calm and she took a deep breath welcoming the feeling._

_He smiled softly, feeling her body ease besides him. He waited until the sun was halfway through its morning process before turning to her. He took a deep breath, the nerves building up inside him. Since when did he get nervous? He felt the butterflies when she turned to look at him, smiling._

"_It's beautiful," she whispered._

"_Yes, it is," he nodded._

_She smiled widely, loving how he too appreciated the moment._

"_Poppy," he took a deep breath. Yes, he was going to take this chance…_

_Was he nervous? Poppy couldn't help but smile wider._

"_I want to see you again, and I don't want to have to wait around to bump into you. I want to know that I am going to see you again." He spoke quickly, making her laugh softly._

_Bad move. His face clouded over, suddenly shutting her out. She had to act quickly or he was going to turn away._

"_I'd love to see you again," she smiled._

"_Really?" He smiled back. "Good."_

_He turned away to look back at the sunset._

"_Err, Griffin, you're supposed to ask me out now?" Poppy laughed._

"_Oh, yeah," Griffin laughed again. "What are you doing tomorrow night? I would like to take you somewhere."_

"_Hmmm… as of this moment I'm booked." Poppy smiled. "Where would you like to take me?"_

"_It's a surprise." He smiled back. "Meet me here at seven o clock."_

"_I look forward to it…"_

_They turned there heads back to the east and continued watching the sun. Enjoying the view and each others company._

She didn't want to remember this. Any of it. Yet even as she sprang from her bed and made her way quickly to shut the drapes, planning to block out the night sky, he enveloped her mind. He was apart of everything. Everything she used to be and everything she'd become in the hopes of getting rid of him. Why wasn't it working? _Because you don't want it to work, _an unwelcome voice screamed in the back of her mind. Yes she did, she was sure of it. Wasn't she? She stood there, her fingers clinging to the soft material, yet not moving to slide them along. The sky was screaming out to her, almost praying for her to listen. Listen to the memories it seemed to control. But all they brought was pain. Why did he have to be what he was? _Because it made him __who__ he was._ Then why did he have to do what he did? _Only he can answer that._ But he would never answer, because he wasn't there to ask. _The Letter._ No, she shook her head slowly, banishing the thoughts to the back of her mind. She wasn't ready for that option. That option meant so much more then a few words on paper. That meant the line between clinging on or letting go. And in her heart, she still didn't know whether she wanted to. She sat down on her windowsill and watched the darkness. He was everywhere and slowly she let her eyes close and the images, the _memories,_ wash over her once more.

_Poppy was nervous, she could feel it rinsing over her body and taking control, making her hands shake continuously. Her mind was racing with ideas of what he could have planned. She had waited with eager anticipation all day and now she was finally making her way up the hill towards him. She saw his silhouette in the setting sun and couldn't help but smile. She hoped she looked good. She had opted for a black twist trim sun dress and a pair of red jersey print ballet pumps. She looked presentable, she knew that much. She had plaited her hair loosely to the side. She had opted for minimal make up and had thought she looked good, now as she made her way up the hill she wished she'd rung Janey and asked her advice._

_He turned to look at her slowly and her heart rate multiplied. He smiled slowly as she reached him. He looked like he always did, black jeans, black boots, black tee shirt and black leather jacket. She couldn't help but smile further._

"_You look..." he struggled for a word. "Good, really good."_

"_Thank you. You look… well, like Griffin." She mused._

_He laughed softly taking her hand, "ready?"_

"_Where are we going?" She asked softly._

"_Told you, it's a surprise." Griffin pulled her hand gently and began leading her back down the hill. She frowned softly, wondering where he was taking her._

_It didn't take her long to find out. As they made their way along the tree line and then slowly through the trees themselves they came to a clearing Poppy had never seen before. Her frown deepened slowly. She thought she knew everything about this place. She guessed not._

_As they cleared the trees she found herself staring at a picnic blanket laid out on the ground a basket besides it. She gasped quietly. She would never have thought something like this would come from Griffin. He didn't seem like the sort._

"_I know, never would have done this before." He laughed._

"_So what makes this different?" She smiled slowly._

"_You."_


	6. Author says thankyooou

-1Hey, everyone.

thank you so much for all you're support.

I've been so motivated by all of you and promise to start the next chapter as soon as possible.

I intend to have it up in a week at the most.

Once again, thank you. You've all been amazing.

Chelsea.

xoxo


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